MONTREAL/WASHINGTON, August 12, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)
If it seems like there’s been a new generation taking over at this year’s ATP Masters 1000 National Bank Open presented by Rogers in Montreal, that’s because there has been.
The last eight lineup at IGA Stadium in Jarry Park marked the first time in history that all eight quarterfinalists at an ATP Tour event were players born in the 2000s. It’s also the first time all eight quarterfinalists at an ATP Tour event were aged 25-and-under since 2007 at the Paris Masters.
At 25, American Brandon Nakashima is the oldest of the bunch, while Spaniard Rafael Jodar is the youngest at 19. Both are playing some of their best tennis of the season in Canada this week. Neither seemed too affected by Monday evening’s cancellation of their respective matches due to persistent rain.
On Tuesday afternoon, the first quarterfinal between the 28th-seeded Nakashima of the United States and No. 19 seed Luciano Darderi of Italy broke the pair’s 1-1 lifetime head-to-head. It turned out to be all in favor of Nakashima, who won 6-2, 6-3 in one hour and 17 minutes to advance to Wednesday’s semifinal round.
Into new territory 💪@b_nakashima defeats Darderi 6-2 6-3 to advance into a first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final 🤩@OBNmontreal #OBN26 pic.twitter.com/Qjr0IT3FJe
— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 11, 2026
By winning, Nakashima, who was playing in his first ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal, guaranteed an American presence in the fifth of six Canada editions in this decade. He denied Darderi, who was a semifinalist in Rome, of reaching back-to-back ATP Masters 1000 semifinals.
Nakashima relied upon his solid and accurate serve, which produced 11 aces and an 83-percent efficiency rate on first-serve points won (30 of 36). He struck 26 winners, made just 11 unforced errors and saved all four break points he faced. Nakashima outpointed Darderi 66-48.
“It was super important [to get the win] today,” Nakashima said during his on-court interview. “In the second set, I had to dig out of some tough holes. My serve really helped me a lot. It gave me a lot of confidence after the first set. I took the opportunities on the return when I needed to.”
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Now, Nakashima is through to his 14th career ATP Tour semifinal – and fifth one this season. With Tuesday’s quarterfinal victory, his PIF ATP Live Ranking has shot up to No. 25, securing a new career-high after Montreal.
“My confidence is definitely at an all-time high. I’m feeling great with every match out here,” Nakashima said. “I’m really thankful for my team and hopefully we can keep it going.”
Later, during his news conference, Nakashima said: “It was a goal of mine at the beginning of the year to try to do well at one of these Masters 1000 tournaments. So, yeah, to be able to do it the for first time here is really special.”
Jodar Moves Up To No. 11 In Live Rankings with Fils Win
Meanwhile, in the second quarterfinal, the 19-year-old Jodar came in playing in his third-consecutive ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal, after Madrid and Rome. With his 7-6 (5), 6-3 victory over No. 18 seed Arthur Fils of France in one hour and 42 minutes, Jodar became the first man born in 2006 or later to reach a semifinal at the ATP Masters 1000 level. He will play Nakashima in Wednesday’s semifinal round.
The 20th-seeded Jodar improved his head-to-head against Fils to 2-1. After winning their only prior hard-court meeting in the first round at Washington, D.C., two weeks ago en route to reaching the biggest final of his young career, Jodar was the steadier player in Montreal. He hit 20 winners, won 77 percent (37 of 51) of his first-serve points, converted four of 12 break points and outpointed Fils 79-73.
First Masters 1000 semi-finalist born in 2006 👶🏻
Jodar enters the biggest SF of his career, as he eliminates Fils 7-6(5) 6-3!#NBO26 pic.twitter.com/bVeJJ5RjjQ
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 11, 2026
After a 59-minute rain delay, with Jodar ahead 5-4, 0-30 43 minutes into the opening set, play resumed. Jodar went on to win the quarterfinal on his fourth match-point opportunity. It was his 34th victory of the season and his PIF ATP Live Ranking is up to No. 11, surpassing Jiri Lehecka and Alexander Bublik.
“Today I played at a very high level against a tough player like Arthur,” Jodar said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “I gave it my best today to win the match. …
“I knew even being a set up and a break up it wasn’t going to be easy. The match was not finished. Arthur always gives it his best until the match is finished.”
During his post-match news conference, Jodar was asked by a reporter if he’s reassessed his goals after enjoying such a break-out season.
“My goal is still the same, to improve, to discover all the tournaments in my first year on the tour and to play a lot of matches, if it’s possible because of the results,” Jodar said. “And that’s it. I mean, not trying to go up in the rankings. I think that’s more secondary, and that’s something that it shouldn’t be your primary thing and your goal.”
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Shelton extends Canadian winning streak to 10
Reigning NBO champion Ben Shelton of the United States, the only Top-10 player left in the draw, extended his winning streak at this event to 10 with his 6-3, 6-1 victory over No. 13 seed Jakub Mensik of Czechia.
The World No. 10 and fifth-seeded Shelton faced the only other ATP Masters 1000 champion in the draw in Mensik. With his 31st victory of the season, which was punctuated by his 18 winners against just three unforced errors, Shelton advanced to his second ATP Masters 1000 semifinal and kept Mensik from becoming the first man to record 20 tour-level wins on hard courts this season.
Simply relentless 😮@Shelton turns in a ruthless 6-3, 6-1 performance against Mensik to continue his title defence 👊@OBNmontreal | #NBO26 pic.twitter.com/aN2VEEQNVv
— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 11, 2026
Shelton dropped just three points on his first serve, winning 89 percent (25 of 28) of those points. He faced no break points and converted four of six break-point opportunities. Shelton outpointed Mensik 60-37.
“It felt great,” Shelton said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “To be honest I was really happy with my return game. The way that I played from the ground from point one for me is where I want to be at. I think that the level that I maintained throughout the match was really high and if I was nitpicking at all, it was just the way I served at the end.
“I kind of lost the rhythm on my serve, but I’m super happy with the way that I played tonight and the performance I came up with. I hope to continue and build on these things in the semis.”
In his news conference, Shelton added: “I think that tonight I was able to more so dissect what was happening on the other side of the court and find ways to be effective, and I executed really well tonight.”
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Tien rolls over Merida, into first ATP Masters 1000 semifinal
In Wednesday evening’s second semifinal match, Shelton will face 20-year-old Learner Tien of the United States, whom he is 0-2 lifetime. The 12th-seeded Tien rolled over No. 63 Daniel Merida of Spain, 6-3, 6-2, in one hour and 12 minutes for his 25th triumph of the 2026 season.
The American No. 3 Tien was playing in his second ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal after Indian Wells earlier this season, while Merida arrived in Montreal without any tour-level victories on hard courts but strung together four quality wins before losing to Tien.
Now, Tien is through to his first ATP Masters 1000 semifinal. He hit 13 winners to 13 unforced errors, won 71 percent (27 of 38) of his first-serve points, converted four of eight break points and outpointed Merida 64-43.
“Mentally, I was very steady,” Tien said during his on-court interview. “Mentally I was able to stay calm and to hold him off. I got better at the end.”
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Around IGA Stadium
There were three doubles quarterfinal matches on Rogers Court Wednesday afternoon.
First, No. 1 seeds Harri Heliovaara of Finland and Henry Patten of Great Britain, winners of five titles this season including Wimbledon, were upset by Argentina duo Francisco Cerundolo and Tomas Martin Etcheverry, 6-3, 6-4, in one hour and 18 minutes. The Argentines, better known for their singles play, saved all 10 break points they faced and outpointed the World No. 1 team of Heliovaara and Patten 57-49.
It was just the eighth loss of the season by Heliovaara and Patten (42-8) and it ended an eight-match winning streak, which began at the start of the Wimbledon Championships.
Next, French duo Theo Arribage and Albano Olivetti advanced with a 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 10-8 victory over Fabian Marozsan of Hungary and Daniil Medvedev of Russia in two hours and 10 minutes. Arribage and Olivetti saved nine of nine break points in advancing despite being outpointed 91-90.
Finally, unseeded Brazilians Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos upset No. 7 seeds Guido Andreozzi of Argentina and Manuel Guinard of France, 6-4, 4-6, 10-7, in one hour and 31 minutes. Luz and Matos outpointed Andreozzi and Guinard 62-60.
In Wednesday’s semifinals, No. 3 seeds Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador and Mate Pavic of Croatia will face Arribage and Olivetti, while Cerundolo and Etcheverry take on Luz and Matos. The winners will play for the title on Thursday.
Tuesday’s National Bank Open results
Wednesday’s National Bank Open order of play
By the numbers
For the second time since 2000, three American men – Ben Shelton, Learner Tien and Brandon Nakashima – advanced to the quarterfinals at the National Bank Open, following Taylor Fritz, Alex Michelsen and Shelton last year. Now, with quarterfinal wins by Shelton, Tien and Nakashima on Tuesday, they are the first American trio to reach the men’s singles semifinals in the Canadian event since Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl and MaliVai Washington in 1992.
“Quotable …”
“I think it’s cool. I think all the young guys doing well is great. I think it’s great for the sport. I think all the young guys are doing a good job of pushing each other and motivating each other.
“You know, one guy does well and all the other guys want to catch him. And it’s a constant cycle and I think it’s great.”
– Learner Tien of the United States, during his post-match news conference Sunday, talking about the youth movement that has hit the ATP Tour this season.
